Electroencephalographic rhythms in Alzheimer's disease

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Gerontology
• Cognitive Science

Background:

• Brain aging is associated with cognitive decline due to synapse loss and neurodegeneration.
• Neural plasticity and cognitive training can preserve brain function in healthy older adults.
• Age is a primary risk factor for neurodegenerative diseases impacting cognition, such as Alzheimer's disease (AD).

Purpose of the Study:

• To review the utility of neurophysiological techniques in assessing brain aging.
• To explore the differentiation between physiological and pathological brain aging using electroencephalography (EEG) and event-related potentials (ERPs).
• To discuss the potential of combining EEG with other biomarkers for assessing at-risk individuals.

Main Methods:

• Review of modern neurophysiological techniques, specifically EEG and ERPs.
• Analysis of corticocortical connectivity and neuronal synchronization of brain oscillations.
• Integration of EEG findings with biological, neuropsychological, and neuroimaging markers.

Main Results:

• EEG and ERPs offer high temporal resolution for investigating cognitive function in normal and pathological aging.
• These techniques can index brain aging by analyzing connectivity and neuronal synchronization.
• Discrimination between physiological and pathological brain aging is achievable at the group level.

Conclusions:

• Neurophysiological methods like EEG are valuable for assessing cognitive function across the aging spectrum.
• Distinguishing healthy aging from neurodegenerative conditions is possible using EEG-based analyses.
• Combining EEG with other markers presents a promising, non-invasive approach for evaluating at-risk populations.